You’ve decided (or are considering) that it would financially benefit your business to allow employees to work from home. With budget cuts, you’ve tried cutting expenses in other areas, but it’s just not enough. Although you’ll potentially save great amounts of money with remote workers, implementing the work-from-home-option now brings you to worry… how do I keep my business information protected? Here’s how:
Look for a solution with access via the web. By using a software-as-a-service document storage application, you can save money by paying a low monthly subscription and allow your virtual workers easy access from anywhere they can connect to the Internet. The secure web access and storage allows you to maintain vital documents with the company, rather than on a worker’s laptop, and also allows you to easily turn off access for employees when necessary.
Strong authentication and encrypted information is the key! Stick to the systems that require secure log in access, and that encrypts information when traveling across the web. Because everyone forgets to always log out of applications when finished working, be sure to implement a system that logs users out automatically after a designated amount of time.
Your system should have administrative controls. When deciding how to properly set up virtual worker teams, make sure you implement a system that can restrict visibility and only allow employees access to the information they are permitted to see. The system you choose should allow you to store information in a single repository, yet set up restricted access for each user, only allowing them to see information they have access to versus system-wide information.
Whatever you do, implement a system or policy that ensures all document edits and changes are monitored. It’s your business… you should know what’s going on! Not to mention, you don’t need the worrisome anticipation of surprise audits that always seem to happen when you’re not prepared. So do your homework, be prepared and choose a system that allows you to view all document history.
A drawback of having remote workers is the lack of opportunity for collaboration efforts. However, you’ll be happy to know… collaboration is still possible. The right electronic document management system should offer a simple method of uploading information, the simultaneous viewing of documents and easily tracking versions. With all collaboration done within the system, no need to worry about an inbox clogged with lengthy attachments or the frustrating instance of using the wrong version of an important document.
Automate a virtual workflow. Some document management solutions allow you to easily create and automate a workflow from within the application. The documents are pushed to the appropriate employee’s task list as soon as they are uploaded in the system and are ready for review. An additional benefit is the ability to stop sending documents using e-mail. Instead, the application will send notifications reminding the employee(s) that a document is ready for review. The documents are maintained and secure in one location giving the company complete control of their mission critical information.
So, no need to cringe at the thought of remote workers. As budget cuts are quite the reality in today’s market, you can implement virtual workers and still feel safe. Online document management is delivered as an inexpensive software-as-a-service, ensuring that your business information is handled efficiently, productively, and best of all, securely.
Increase your productivity with electronic document management. Visit DocuVantage to find the best advice on implementing a document management system.
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